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“Twenty-three years after the death of his father, Orlando Clairmont resolves to find out who his father really was. Sorting the man from the myth, uncovering the elusive art, reconstructing his father from an archive, having a conversation across time - with a dead man. Attempting a resurrection of flesh and blood.
Clairmont On Clairmont is unique in that we get to hear Philip Clairmont discuss his own work in his own words, as reconstructed from audio interviews conducted before his death. Featuring 101 original works by one of New Zealand's most powerful painters; including material from the artist's own notebooks, rarely seen nudes from the family collection, juvenilia from his mother's personal collection, and classic Clairmonts from all the major galleries, institutions and collections in NZ - as well as a wealth of newly discovered and never before seen archival film footage of the man himself.
All pieced together and narrated by the artist's son, Clairmont On Clairmont sheds new light on the process, methods and meaning behind some of Clairmont's best known paintings as well as offering a powerfully personal portrait of an idiosyncratic painter and an enigmatic father. Orlando Clairmont explores Philip Clairmont's body of work, joining with his father in taking us on a guided tour through some of Clairmont's prolific output, focusing on pieces of personal significance to Orlando and his father and mother. Including rarely seen late works of the artist's family; the Birth Triptych, Nude Triptych, Our Lady of the Flowers, The Holy Family and major Clairmonts from key collections and institutions in NZ.
Orlando reconstructs a brief biography of his father's life and times, placing him in the surrounding context of recent NZ history and the wider tradition of painting itself. Including interviews with Philip Clairmont, his partner (Rachel Power - Orlando's mother) and the priceless recollections of Phil's mother, the late Thelma Clairmont.
Clairmont On Clairmont also features numerous stills from the family archive and images from many well known New Zealand photographers: Mark Adams, Simon Buis, John Daley, Rachael Feather, Marti Friedlander, Sally Griffin, Gil Hanly, Glenn Jowitt, Larence N. Shustak and Paul Tulloch." TVNZ; tvnz.co.nz; 29/10/2007